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Sport shorts: Derby County in crisis after drink-driving incident and England’s Piers Francis is cited for high tackle at RWC
Ten things from the world of sport on Friday 27 September
Derby County will be without captain Richard Keogh for the rest of the season after the defender suffered a serious knee injury in the car crash that saw team-mates Tom Lawrence and Mason Bennett charged with drink-driving.
The Daily Telegraph reports that the Irish international was a passenger in the back seat of Lawrence’s Range Rover Sport which crashed into a lamppost on Tuesday night.
Championship club Derby issued a statement confirming Keogh’s injury and said those involved in the incident “will pay a heavy price for their actions”.
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The statement said: “As a club, we cannot, and do not, condone the actions of a small group of players on Tuesday evening.
“The players were out as part of a scheduled team-building dinner with staff and while the majority of them acted responsibly and left at around 8pm and were not involved, a small group, including the team captain Richard Keogh, continued drinking into the night.
“They should have known when to stop and also ignored the opportunity to be driven home using cars laid on by the club, and chose to stay out.
“The players involved in the incident on Tuesday evening will be subject to a rigorous internal investigation under the club’s code of conduct and disciplinary procedures.
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“Those involved in Tuesday’s incident know they will pay a heavy price for their actions, but also that we will support them with their rehabilitation back into the squad and team.”
2. Leclerc fastest in FP1 at Russian GP
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc set the pace ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in this morning’s first practice (FP) session at the Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix.
Ferrari are aiming for a fourth successive race victory after wins for Leclerc in Belgium and Italy and Sebastian Vettel’s success in Singapore last week.
Last year in Sochi victory was taken away from Valtteri Bottas after Mercedes ordered the Finn to let Lewis Hamilton through to win the race.
Bottas, who won in Russia in 2017, said: “I’ve got some unfinished business in Sochi. It has normally been a good track for me and I need to make sure it will be again.”
After Essex secured a second County Championship in three years ex-England cricket captain Alastair Cook vowed to play on for one more season.
The 34-year-old told BBC Essex: “I’ve had a few texts this week actually, saying ‘if you win the league is that it’, but I’ve promised Tendo [Essex captain Ryan ten Doeschate] I’ll be playing for another year at least.”
(Image credit: Scott Barbour/Getty Images)
4. Murray: I was struggling
British tennis star Andy Murray is out of the Zhuhai Championships in China after losing 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in the last 16 against Alex de Minaur.
Murray, who is continuing his comeback after hip surgery, said: “Physically, I was struggling. My level dropped off a little bit and he capitalised on that.”
5. New takeover bid for the Toon
Former Chelsea and Manchester United chief executive Peter Kenyon has launched a new bid to buy Newcastle United from Mike Ashley.
Sky Sports reports that Kenyon’s new American investment fund GACP Sports is putting together a package worth around £300m for the Premier League club.
6. J.Lo and Shakira to play Super Bowl show
The NFL has announced that Jennifer Lopez and Shakira will perform during the half-time show at Super Bowl LIV.
American football’s showpiece match will be played on 2 February 2020 at Hard Rock Stadium in Florida, home ground of the Miami Dolphins.
(Image credit: Jan Kruger/Getty Images)
7. United trio a doubt for Arsenal clash
Paul Pogba is an injury doubt for Manchester United’s Premier League game against Arsenal on Monday. The Frenchman picked up an ankle injury against Rochdale in midweek.
United forwards Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are also likely to remain on the sidelines for the match at Old Trafford.
This weekend’s Premier League fixtures Saturday 28 September (3pm unless stated)
Sheffield United vs. Liverpool (12.30pm, live on BT Sport)
Aston Villa vs. Burnley
AFC Bournemouth vs. West Ham United
Chelsea vs. Brighton & Hove Albion
Crystal Palace vs. Norwich City
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Southampton
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Watford
Everton vs. Manchester City (5.30pm, live on Sky Sports)
Sunday 29 September
Leicester City vs. Newcastle United (4.30pm, live on Sky Sports)
Monday 30 September
Manchester United vs. Arsenal (8pm, live on Sky Sports)
8. Rivaldo: Barca must let Messi recover
Lionel Messi could be set for another spell on the sidelines after injuring his left adductor in Barcelona’s midweek win over Villarreal.
Former Barca and Brazil star Rivaldo says Messi should not be rushed back. Writing in his column for Betfair, Rivaldo said: “As the Argentinian returns from injury, the club needs to be careful about not rushing him back.
“He’s 32 years old and has been playing at the highest level for a while without any rest, so it’s normal to see him starting to feel some pain at times.
“The club needs to let him fully recover so that he doesn’t suffer a recurrence of his injuries right after returning to the team.”
Ireland will look to kick on from their impressive 27-3 win against Scotland by silencing the Rugby World Cup’s host nation tomorrow.
Coach Joe Schmidt has picked a strong starting XV for the game against Japan, although he’s rested fly-half Jonathan Sexton and instead gone for Connacht’s Jack Carty.
In tomorrow’s first World Cup match Argentina and Tonga play in pool C (5.45am, all times BST). Japan vs. Ireland (8.15am) in pool A and South Africa vs. Namibia in pool B (10.45am) follows.
There’s two matches in pool D on Sunday. First up is Georgia and Uruguay (6.15am) then Australia and Wales go head-to-head in Tokyo (8.45am).
On Monday Scotland face a must-win clash against big-hitting Samoa in pool A (11.15am).
England continued their winning start at the Rugby World Cup yesterday, beating the United States 45-7 in pool C, but the victory was marred by two tackling controversies.
The Guardian reports that Eddie Jones’s team have been “caught up in the World Cup tackling storm” after a bruising encounter against the Americans.
Owen Farrell was lucky to escape serious injury after receiving a shoulder to the face from the US’s John Quill - who saw red for the offence.
It was also confirmed today that England centre Piers Francis has been cited for an “act of foul play” following his dangerous high tackle on Will Hooley.
